Face2News/Nevada (USA)
Hindus are urging Gärtnerplatz Theater of Munich (Germany) to withdraw Lakmé opera performances; scheduled for March (27, 29) and April (four) in 2027; which they feel seriously trivializes Hindu religious and other traditions.
Distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today; said that prestigious institutions like Gärtnerplatz Theater should not be in the business of callously promoting appropriation of traditions, elements and concepts of “others”; and ridiculing entire communities.
Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, indicated that this deeply problematic opera was just a blatant belittling of a rich civilization and exhibited 19th-century orientalist attitudes. He also urged Gärtnerplatz Theater to apologize for such an inappropriate selection.
Gärtnerplatz Theater should have shown some maturity before selecting an opera like Lakmé (Lakshmi), displaying Western caricaturing of Eastern heritage and abetting ethnic stereotyping, Rajan Zed noted.
It was highly irresponsible for an establishment like Gärtnerplatz Theater to choose such an opera which had been blamed for caricaturing, appearance of mocking of “other” cultures, colonial terminology, degrading and offensive elements, dehumanizing portrayal, essentialism, narratives often failing to represent “other” cultures with dignity and humanity, imperialistic outlook, justifying ideas of superiority, looking down on people and customs, misrepresentation, considerably wrong about the culture it was supposed to be portraying, needless appropriation of cultural motifs, patronizing flawed mishmash of centuries-old orientalist stereotypes, pseudo and unabashed orientalism, reimagining Hindu traditions-practices-deities, shallow exoticism based on prejudice, etc. Gärtnerplatz Theater could do better than this to serve its diverse stakeholders; Zed stated.
Rajan Zed suggested Gärtnerplatz Theater Artistic Director Josef E. Köpplinger and Executive Director Inka Albrecht re-evaluate their systems and procedures and send their officials for cultural sensitivity training so that such inappropriate stuff did not slip through in the future.
Like many others, Hindus also consider opera as one of the revered art forms which offers richness and depth. But we are well into the 21st century now, and outdated Lakmé, which premiered in 1883 in Paris, is long overdue for permanent retirement from the world stage; Zed points out.
With music direction by Sébastien Rouland and staging by Alexander Kreuselberg, Lakmé premieres at Gärtnerplatz Theater on March 27, 2027 in French with German and English subtitles.
Lakmé, a French opera in three acts, was composed by Léo Delibes and set in India in the mid-19th century.
Gärtnerplatz Theater is one of the most active theaters in Germany, whose foundation stone was laid in the Isarvorstadt district of Munich in 1864.
Hinduism, oldest and third largest religion of the world, has about 1.2 billion adherents, and moksh (liberation) is its ultimate goal.
